The end of the road…

On October 20, 2009, 20 months, 18 border crossings and 45,946 km later we arrived in Ushuaia, Tierra del Fuego without a single flat tire.

Marlin, our little red battler, survived temperatures ranging from -40 to +40ºC, painfully huge speedbumps, numerous river crossings and some of the craziest roads to bring us to Ushuaia, the southernmost city in the world.

The end of the road actually lies within Tierra del Fuego’s Parque Nacional – a packed, dirt road winds through thick forest taking you to the end of Ruta Tres. And from, there, well you are going to have to walk if you want to get any further.

We enjoyed a picnic at the end of the road with good friends and fellow roadtrippers, Kristin and Chris. Wine (from the end of the world of course), some nibblies and lots of laughter capped off our trip.

It is hard to believe that after all our saving, talking, planning and, of course, driving we are suddenly here. It is quite surreal and at this moment I think we are still a bit stunned that we made it. A few nights before we arrived I lay awake pondering our travels over the past 20 months. With the Pan American Highway now behind us, I tossed and turned disbelieving that our driving adventure was coming to a close (at least for now). So we find ourselves at the end (literally and figuratively) with our trusty little Volkswagen Golf thinking of the generosity of those we met along the way, the countries we have seen, the moments of frustration, the laughter, the learning and the knowledge that a small car and a couple of regular people can sometimes do something just a little bit out of the ordinary.

10 comments

Wow guys, we can hardly believe this is it. We couldn’t even imagine that this day would ever come. Congratulations on completing the adventure of a lifetime! You guys are the best – wanna come back to Guate and hang for a bit? Your travels make us want to pack up Dewey and head further south…..who know what the future will hold. Thanks for inspiring us to dream big and have our own mini-adventure. Long live Marlin!

Hey guys, congratulations on reaching the end of the road… so to speak. I’ve enjoyed travelling vicariously via your blog, it sounds like it’s been an awesome road trip and a load of fun. I guess you’ll be sorry to say goodbye to Marlin along with the all to familiar feel and smell of a car that’s been well used and woven into so many memories.

Krista – thanks for all your support…it has been one wild trip that is for sure. We would love to come hang in Guate… that is if we had any money left! Jobs are the order of the day but we hope we can visit you guys some day soon. Dewey would love it down here

Kristen – I KNOW!!! How amazing is that eh? I wished we had kept track maybe the Guiness Book of World Records would have taken our feat!

Matt – Say it isn’t so… We don’t know what the future holds for Marlin, he might hang out with us a bit longer in Argentina as we are planning to live in Buenos Aires for awhile.

Maybe I’m a cheesy, sappy saussy sis—but this entry made me tear up a lil bit. I’m soooo very proud and happy for you two—I knew you’d make it. The last sentence is the best—totally warms my heart and made me smile.